Pulchra terra Dei donum

Due to public transport sucking I got up incredibly early today to head over to Hereford to see this year's Photography Festival, which is the 21st consecutive one, and, I am reliably informed, the largest of its kind in Europe. This year's festival was curated by Simon Bainbridge, the editor of the British Journal of Photography, a magazine I always enjoy reading. The train journey meant much iPod time, from which my selection for today is this (seminal seminal band).

Even though I saw exhibitions in the majority of Hereford over several hours, I've just looked back through the programme and its astonishing how much I didn't even get to see. I would love to go back for a second look, but with the festival ending on the 26th I can't see myself getting down there in time. If you haven't been, and you do have the chance to go then FOR GOD'S SAKE TAKE IT.

Highlights of what I saw there today were:

- Robbie Cooper's Immersion project (This is a set of images taken whilst people are busy watching a video or playing computer game, really quite original and you get so much from his unobtrusive method)

- Mark Paul & Paddy Kelly's Manouevres show (Excellent landscapes of Brecon Beacons areas where the army train, and haunting images from former sites where the IRA trained from the respective photographers)

- Andy Day's Parkour Photography set. This is his first exhibition after years of documenting this rising activity. There were some great cityscapes and intriguing perspectives that I would like to apply to photographing skateboarding

- John Bulmer's Out of England: Images from Overseas includes some incredible photographs from important historical and political events, from all over the world - is there anywhere he hasn't been?